Living the best life through adaptation

[Hobbie]

Mustachians, riddle me this.

How much is this all about adaptability to our surroundings and situation that applying a 'one size fits all' approach?

Sure, optimize and don't waste, but I'm slowly realising this can't look the same for everyone. Families are different to couples, and are different to singles. 2 cars vs 1 car vs no car are very different, especially living a bit further out. Buying lots of stuff when starting out is different than buying stuff later (when you've got it all...).

Anyone else struggling with this?

[Moustachienne]

Well, the details will differ for each of us but the basic philosophy is one size fits all.  Know your values and goals and make sure your spending reflects them.  Dial down your consumer desires. Dial up your understanding of your effect on the environment.  Understand the difference between wants and needs.  Value a life of reflection and yep, even self criticism over a life on mindless consumer autopilot.  I could go on but there's a whole blog on this!  :)

Edited to add: more pertinent to your question: once you're asking and answering the philosophical questions, the details that best match your situation will emerge.  They aren't the same for everyone but it can be helpful to do a little light comparison with others in similar situations to see if you've come up with the best answers for yourself or if you can or want to dig deeper.